Health Conditions in Younger, Middle, and Older Ages: Are There Differences by Sexual Orientation?

Abstract

Purpose: Sexual minorities engage in more risk behaviors at a younger age than heterosexuals and many are subject to minority stress from a young age, which raises questions about the age at which sexual minorities' experience morbidities. Our objective was to estimate the prevalence of health conditions among young, middle age, and older age groups to examine sexual orientation differences while stratifying by gender.

Methods: We pooled 4 years of data from the California Health Interview Survey to obtain a representative sample of the male and female population in California, allowing us to examine health conditions by sexual orientation in three age strata, age 20-39, age 40-59, and age 60 and older.

Results: Compared with same-gender heterosexuals, sexual minority women had a higher likelihood of physical morbidities (disability: adjusted odds ratio [AOR] 2.66 for lesbians and AOR 2.21 for bisexuals; arthritis: AOR 2.12 for lesbians) at a young age, whereas gay men had a higher likelihood of heart disease (AOR 2.78) and cancer (AOR 4.75) at a young age. Across the life span, sexual minorities had higher likelihoods of poor mental health than heterosexuals.

Conclusion: These findings suggest that at a young age, sexual minorities experience more morbidities than heterosexual individuals. Consideration should be given to early detection, identification, and treatment of these conditions among sexual minorities particularly at younger ages.

Keywords: aging; health status; homosexuality; morbidity; sex distribution.